Patient-Reported Disease-Modifying Therapy Adherence in the Clinic: A Reliable Metric?

Background: Adherence to multiple sclerosis (MS) disease-modifying therapy (DMT) is commonly assessed through patient reporting, but patient-reported adherence is rarely studied.

Objective: To determine rates of DMT adherence reported from patient to clinician, reasons for nonadherence, and relationships between adherence and outcomes.

Methods: We identified relapsing-remitting MS patients on DMT for ≥3 months. DMT adherence was defined as taking ≥80% of doses. Linear and logistic regression models were created used to determine the association of baseline adherence with several patient reported outcomes and the timed 25-foot walk at 6 months, 1 year, 2 years, and 3 years after the index visit.

Results: The analysis included 1148 patients, of whom 501 had data at 6 months, 544 at 1 year, 331 at 2 years, and 247 at 3 years. Baseline adherence was 94.9% and overall adherence was 93.1%. Forgetting was the most common reason for missed doses. In the adjusted models, adherence was not associated with the outcomes.

Conclusions: Higher than expected adherence and a lack of association between adherence and outcomes suggests patient reported adherence may not be reliable. Further research is needed to clarify the relationship between patient-reported adherence and relapses or new lesion formation.